KUTZTOWN, Pa.- Following a thrilling 2-1 victory over Mercyhurst in the PSAC women's soccer semifinals yesterday afternoon, the West Chester University women's soccer team (13-3-3) is finishing its preparations for the 2023 edition of the PSAC Championship game against Gannon (15-3-2), who dispatched top seed and previously unbeaten Kutztown last night by a 2-0 final.
If any of this sounds familiar to West Chester soccer fans, that is because it's almost identical to the run the Golden Rams made a year ago, defeating East Stroudsburg in the Quarterfinals, Mercyhurst in the semifinals, and facing Gannon in search of a PSAC Championship. If West Chester can repeat as PSAC Tournament Champions, the Golden Rams will earn an automatic berth in the NCAA Tournament when it begins next week and become the first repeat Champions since East Stroudsburg won four in a row from 2014-17.
FAN INFORMATION:
Similarly, to the Quarterfinals at Rockwell Field on Monday afternoon, tickets will be required for Sunday afternoon's matchup with prices set at $10 for adults and $5 for students with students from PSAC Member Institutions with current, valid ID being admitted free of charge. Fans should purchase tickets for Sunday's Championship via this
link.
Fans unable to make the trip to watch the Golden Rams in person can follow the action via
live stats and
live video.
THE SERIES
West Chester and Gannon lack significant history with one another, having met 15 times over the years, with West Chester holding an 11-3-1 lead in the all-time series against the Golden Knights. West Chester has won four of the last five against Gannon, including a 3-0 victory over the Golden Knights in the PSAC Championship game a year ago. When the two teams met last November, the matchup came a week earlier, but circumstances were largely the same: two squads with little PSAC Championship game experience looking to bring a trophy back to campus. West Chester got out to an early lead, scoring all three of its goals in the first half, including a 12th-minute tally by
Alyson Cutter (Warrington, Pa./C.B. South), who was eventually named Tournament MVP. The 2023 edition features a pair of teams with substantially more experience on this stage, particularly for the Golden Rams, as head coach
Betty Ann Kempf Townsley's group returns much of the team that won the title and advanced to the Division II National Championship game a year ago.
HOW THEY GOT HERE
To return to the PSAC Championship game, West Chester once again had to go through Mercyhurst in the Semifinal round. In contrast to a year ago, when West Chester got out to an early first-half lead and never looked back, the Lakers scored first, finding the first goal just over seven minutes into regulation. West Chester trailed at the half despite holding an advantage in shots and shots on goal but evened the score quickly in the second half, finding the tying goal in the 57
th minute when PSAC East Player of the Year
Faith Matter (Middletown, Pa./Middletown) scored the equalizer off an assist from
Kaitlynn Haughey (Philadelphia, Pa./Penn Charter), Jacqueline Hug (West Chester, Pa./Unionville). The foursome of Cutter, Matter, Haughey, and Hug gave the Lakers fits throughout the remainder of regulation, but they could hold off the Golden Rams, forcing overtime. West Chester wasted little time in OT, racing down the field and scoring just 11 seconds in as Hug found Haughey for the eventual game-winner.
When asked about advancing to the Championship for the second year in a row, head coach
Betty Ann Kempf Townsley said, "I'm so excited for this team. To go down 1-0 early and fight back the way we did is tremendous. Our team has dealt with so much adversity this year and has continued to fight back, which is a great tribute to this entire team. Having been on this stage last year, I think we know what these games feel like and what it takes to win this time of year. Our team is very strong-minded and strong-willed in these games, so I'm very excited to see us back on the field on Sunday."
Gannon enjoyed a slightly less stressful road back to the PSAC Championship game, scoring first just over 12 minutes into the game before tacking on an insurance goal in the 35
th minute to surprise the top-seed Golden Bears and return to the PSAC Championship. Morgan Sinan was also excellent for Gannon on Friday night, making four big saves to pick up the win and shutout.
FLOCK TALK
A year ago, West Chester was challenging to beat in the postseason, playing to a record of 7-1-0, needing overtime just once to advance to the National Championship game for the first time in program history. In 2023, the story has been resiliency for the Golden Rams as the team has battled through adversity and early deficits all season long, including its early deficit on Friday afternoon. Head coach
Betty Ann Kempf Townsley will make her sixth PSAC Championship game appearance on Sunday afternoon, showing a career record of 4-2-0 in such games, including a victory a season ago.
Matter recently added PSAC East Player of the Year honors to her growing trophy case and has enjoyed a tremendous sophomore season, scoring 10 goals and assisting on nine others for a team-best 29 points on the year. Four of her 10 goals have gone down as game-winners, something she was particularly adept at doing in the postseason a year ago. Matter is far from the only dangerous option for the Golden Rams as Cutter ranks second on the team in scoring with seven goals and three assists for 17 points, while Hug and Haughey are also in double digits for points with 14 (3 G, 8 A) and 10 (4 G, 2 A), respectively.
Defensively, freshman keeper
Grace Keen (Lincoln University, Pa./Avon Grove) has grown more and more with each passing game of her rookie season between the pipes, entering play with a record of 13-3-3 and a 0.79 goals against average with 10 shutouts to her credit. In league play, Keen has been even more difficult to score against, posting a 0.76 goals-against average against PSAC East opponents. Similarly to last year, West Chester has once again done an excellent job of limiting opponents opportunities this year, holding the opposition to an average of 9.4 shots per game, which is among the best in the league.
SCOUTING GANNON
The Golden Knights may prove to be the biggest test of the year for Keen and the Golden Ram defense, entering play averaging a league-best three goals per game, led by the dangerous duo of Grace Emanuel and Brooklyn Respecki, who enter play with 13 and 12 goals each.
Respecki, who earned PSAC West Rookie of the Year honors as one of seven Golden Knights on the all-league squad, leads the team and league in scoring with 38 points, thanks to 12 goals and 14 assists on the season. Emanuel is close behind with 30 points of her own, notching 13 goals to go along with four assists to help make Gannon one of the most dangerous offensive teams in the league. Gabby Boden has been another dangerous option for Gannon this year, entering Sunday with 18 points to her name, scoring five goals and assisting on eight others to help lead the Golden Knight offense.
Defensively, Gannon has also done an excellent job of limiting shots, holding opponents to an average of just 6.8 shots per game. When shots do find their way on goal, Morgan Sinan has been tasked with handling these chances, playing to a record of 14-1-2 and a 0.97 goals-against average after her fifth shutout of the season against Kutztown on Saturday night.
UP NEXT:
West Chester returns to the field tomorrow at 1 p.m. for its second PSAC Championship game appearance in the last two years, looking to duplicate its 3-0 victory over the Golden Knights from a season ago. Following this game, West Chester and Gannon will both have the opportunity to rest for a moment and take in the NCAA Tournament selection show on Monday evening beginning at 6:30 p.m. on NCAA.com.
